Regardless of the barriers we face, we are not the victims the world often writes us to be. We are people unfairly burdened by crisis. We are humans forced into a fate we didn't choose for ourselves. And today, we are women who are stepping up to control our own stories. In our words. In our voices. 

Will you stand with us?

Meet Halyna and Masoma

A Ukrainian refugee and an Afghanistan refugee tell their story of friendship and the shared struggle of starting over into a new country.

Meet Maryna, a tram driver from Ukraine

In Ukraine, Maryna worked as a dairy farmer, but after resettling in Poland, she had to rethink the type of work she could do. Then, she discovered tram driving.

Maryna, a client with a caption in the back
I'd rather regret the things that I’ve done than regret the things I haven’t done. I felt it was the place I belonged to. I liked the work, and I believed in myself. When we were asked what we used to do before the war and what we do now, a lot of people wanted to continue working in the same field, but I wanted to change everything completely.
Maryna drives a tram

All you need is to start, to take action. If you keep staying at home and feeling afraid, then what? If we teach children to keep learning something new, then we should also set an example. Don't be afraid! I'm happy and proud of myself

Maryna
The IRC supported intergration and support center in Katowice, Poland
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Key stats

43,814 women

The IRC helps gender-based violence survivors seek protection from harm

We are dedicated to safeguarding women in their homes and providing assistance when they are in danger.

See our safety goals

329,949 women

The IRC ensures that women and girls have access to reproductive health services

Enhancing access to family planning, especially long-acting methods, for women in crisis zones is paramount to our mission.

Learn more about out health goals

23,538 people

The number of people in crisis zones who participated in programs focused on economic empowerment.

The IRC helps those are recovering from conflict and disaster understand their rights and make informed choices for their futures

Explore our power goals

Meet Amna Gul, a health manager from Afghanistan

Amna Gul is a provincial health manager with the IRC who also knows firsthand the hardship of being a woman in Afghanistan. She decided at a young age to become a doctor.

Amna Gul IWD
My mother struggled to find the right health services as a young girl, or when she was pregnant, so when I was growing up, she always encouraged me to become a doctor to support other women in need. I didn't join the mobile health team, but I personally found the mobile health team.
Amna faces the camera, arms folded

When our seniors said to me that we are going to make a mobile health team that is completely composed of women, will it be possible and will I be able to make it? Then I said yes, it is possible—if we want to do something, then it is easy to do something. That was the time that we took the step, announced the positions and hired the female doctors. Now, they are serving the people, especially girls and women in need.

Amna Gul
IRC female mobile health team
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Take our International Women's Day quiz

Women are consistently breaking barriers in the pursuit of gender equality. Challenge yourself with a quiz on women's influence and advocacy.

Who helped the IRC rescue refugees from Europe during World War II?
  • Mary Jane Gold
  • Lisa Fitko
  • First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt
  • All of the above
Correct!
Incorrect.

These three women, and more, helped the IRC evacuate 2,000 people from Europe during WWII. Lisa Fitko guided refugees and intellectuals over the Pyrenees Mountains to relative safety in Spain. Mary Jane Gold leveraged her family's wealth to support refugees displaced by the Nazis and risked her life to deliver information to British intelligence services. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt capitalized on her political influence to secure visas for endangered artists and intellectuals and helped the IRC establish its operations in Marseille, France. Learn more about the true story behind Netflix's "Transatlantic".

Take the complete quiz here.

Meet Rahma, a welder from Uganda

After Rahma had to drop out of school due to Covid-19, she decided to train as a welder. But finding a work placement as a woman proved to be especially challenging.

Meet Rahma
"I told the guy I'm here for welding and he said 'you cannot do this job.' I said yes, if you can learn that means that I will also learn! So, the guy gave me the opportunity and said: ‘if you can compete with the guys, then you can stay here and work.’ So, I had to compete with them and I'm still here, not giving up.”
Meet Rahma

This work is for both men and women, young girls and young boys. If I told you know what you want, you can achieve. What I can tell them never undermine that job, whether it's welding, building or automotive. Just engage yourself in as long as you can get money, you can achieve what you want. Because every girl has their own goals.

Rahma
The IRC and IKEA Foundation's Re:BUiLD program
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Meet Samira, a black belt from Afghanistan

17-year-old Samira and her family left Afghanistan in 2017 because she and her sisters could no longer attend school. After arriving in the United States in May of 2023, Samira plans to graduate school and become a karate instructor.

Meet Samira
"I was born in the country's capital city of Kabul and studied up to 4th grade in Afghanistan. Despite our high expectations, we were unable to achieve them there in reality, and we were even unable to attend school."

"When I practice karate, I feel incredibly pleased and I really enjoy it, and I want to become a karate instructor so that I may pass this skill on to others."
Meet Samira

I believe that being from a family that lets its members pursue whatever they want makes me very fortunate. In fact, in Afghanistan girls are not allowed to do lots of things. Our family is very good. I want to encourage all women and girls who love karate to follow their dreams and never be afraid of anything

Samira
Black belt holder and Afghan refugee
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